On The Way

Today’s bonus episode is a prayer to help you respond to God’s call and take the next faithful step. However you have been moved on this journey, there’s opportunity for you to bring your heart and your talents to serve others on the way.

In today’s bonus episode of the podcast, we’re reflecting on the journey so far, and thinking about the different ways that we’re called to live with others on the way, from our everyday lives to the call to global missions.

For our final practice in this series, we are talking about advocacy. We show advocacy in how we treat others, how we represent them as friends, speak on behalf of their community, and advocate for them in prayer. The workers we talk with today are literally on the way, moving their life and work from one city to another. 

Our practice today is grace. As we’re learning to walk alongside others on the way, we can demonstrate grace by loving them without any set expectations or requirements. Today we’re talking with someone who has been serving for 30 years with Buddhists in the Asia Pacific region.

Today’s practice is lament. Part of being a good friend is being there for someone in the good times and not-so-good times. This can mean showing up when things are difficult or uncomfortable. While we don’t go into detail, today’s podcast does contain some sensitive content which may not be suitable for younger listeners. 

Today we’re talking about friendship, what it means to be a good friend and how we can cultivate friendship in our daily lives. We talk with two workers who have learned about friendship through 15+ years building community while living and working in Asia. 

Today’s practice is peacemaking, which is the culmination of other practices we’ve talked about the last couple of weeks—listening, dialogue, accepting, and patience. Our guest today has spent 30 years living and working in the Buddhist and Hindu world, and he shares with us today how and why we should practice peacemaking. 

We’re talking about patience today, and reflecting on all the ways we can practice this virtue—from being patient with others on the way, to being patient with ourselves as we learn and grow, or showing patience when circumstances don’t work out as we had planned. We’re hearing from someone today who really understands the meaning of cross-cultural work, from South America to Asia. 

Today’s practice is accepting. Accepting allows you to meet people where they are, and embrace them for who they are, rather than hoping everything (and everyone) would be exactly as you’d want it to be. Today’s worker has been teaching for 15 years, and she talks about accepting others because we are accepted as followers of Christ. 

Today we’re talking about sensitivity. Each of the workers we’ve heard from so far has had to learn—by asking meaningful questions, and through making mistakes—how to be more sensitive to the culture around them, building bridges instead of putting up walls. We’re talking with two people who have been working in Asia for 20 years, and considering ways we can develop sensitivity to those around us as well.

Today’s practice is hospitality—an act that isn’t just reserved for holidays, special occasions, or business interactions. Hospitality is a state of the heart, and today we hear from two workers who have learned to both show and receive hospitality as they live life with others on the way. 

Today we’re talking about welcoming. Jesus walked with all sorts of people on the way, showing welcome to outcasts rejected by society. And he welcomed people into relationship. Today we’ll meet a couple that shares with us how they’ve learned to both welcome others and receive welcome.

We’re looking at both sides of a conversation today. The practice of dialogue is about both speaking and listening. It’s a mutual experience, and requires each side to both share and receive. We’ll meet someone who grew up living abroad, and talk about the opportunities that dialogue can bring. 

Today’s practice is listening, which can be especially important when communicating with someone who may have different views—to truly listen to what they’re saying and not project our own ideas onto them. We’re talking with two workers who have been living and working in Asia for 10 years. 

Today we are talking about the practice of presence. Often it’s hard to feel like we’re present in the current moment, or really with the people around us. But presence matters! Both to our own peace of mind and especially in building relationships with others, as we’ll hear from two workers who put presence into practice.

Today we’re talking about the next step after noticing: the practice of naming. We’ll meet a cross-cultural worker who is a natural at forming intentional relationships. When she moved to Asia, she immersed herself in the hospitality culture of her host country, and found herself feeling at home. She’ll share some ways she’s learned to build relationships over the last several years.

In this first episode, we’re starting at the very beginning of any relationship: noticing. You can’t start a conversation with someone new until you notice them first. We talk with two cross-cultural workers about what it means to notice others in their work, and how they see the humanity in people while living in community.